Dario Bartoli remembered through tributes at skate park, school
Dario Bartoli remembered as skilled BMXer who liked spending time with friends
Tributes to slain teen Dario Bartoli have gone up in South Surrey to remember the 15-year old as a good friend, and as a passionate BMXer.
"RIP Dario" is spray painted at a skate park once frequented by Bartoli.
"After he hurt himself, and he banged up his leg big time ... and as soon as it healed he was back on his bike doing flips and twists," one woman who remembers him from the skate park told The Early Edition's Jesse Johnston.
"He liked being with his friends a lot. I saw him at the skate park a bunch of times, just hanging out with his friends. He liked bike riding a lot and doing tricks," a friend of Bartoli's said.
Another memorial near Earl Marriott Secondary School — where Bartoli went to school — has a skateboard with the spray painted message, "Love U."
Geoff Stewart, the high school pastor at Peace Portal Church, said the memorials help Bartoli's friends come to terms with their grief.
"This is their outlet. This is a way for them to share publicly all the things they're wrestling with. The feelings that they have about it. It's raw."
Stewart took photos of the memorials to send to Bartoli's family.
"These skate parks are constantly evolving and they're always changing, and to take a snapshot of this week in time, where it's overwhelmingly about Dario is, I think, a great memory for them."
Tributes are also pouring in on social media, where friends are remembering Bartoli.
On mobile? Click here to read Abby Strand's tweet.
On mobile? Click here to read Amy DuMoulin's tweet.
Earlier this week RCMP asked teens to contact them directly with information rather than post rumours on social media.
The case is still under investigation, and no arrests have been made. An autopsy is expected to be completed sometime this week.
Bartoli's funeral will be held on Saturday.
Jesse Johnston covers stories South of the Fraser on The Early Edition every Wednesday at 7:40 a.m.
To hear more about tributes to Dario Bartoli, click the audio labelled: Dario Bartoli remembered.
With files from the CBC's Jesse Johnston.